Clinton Link to Fund-Raiser Adds Spice to Mundane Trial

By LESLIE EATON

Published: May 11, 2005

As the criminal trial of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's former chief fund-raiser began here Tuesday in Federal District Court, about 60 potential jurors were asked whether they have ''such strong feelings one way or another'' about the senator that it would be difficult for them ''to impartially consider this case? (If so, please explain.)''

The question was posed in a written questionnaire approved by prosecutors, the judge and the lawyers defending David F. Rosen, the fund-raiser who has been charged with three counts of causing false filings to be made to the Federal Election Commission.

The 17-page questionnaire, including one blank page for comments, also asked potential jurors about their backgrounds, reading habits and political beliefs. It wanted to know any links they have had to more than two dozen people whose names may come up during the trial, ranging from Harold M. Ickes, former senior adviser to President Bill Clinton, to Alana Stewart, former wife of the singer Rod Stewart.

The government has accused Mr. Rosen of deliberately understating the costs of an August 2000 money-raising event in order to free up campaign contributions for other uses during Mrs. Clinton's Senate race in New York against Rick Lazio. Mr. Rosen has pleaded not guilty, and argues that he was himself misled by two other men involved in the event, called the Hollywood Gala Salute to President William Jefferson Clinton.

The link to the Clintons has helped turn what might normally be a rather dry, technical case into a politically tinged trial that has attracted wide attention. (Fox News had a broadcast truck parked outside the courthouse Tuesday morning.) Conservative groups and longtime Clinton foes have called for further investigation into whether Mrs. Clinton knew about the high cost of the event and conspired to cover it up, an accusation her lawyers have repeatedly denied.

But far more than Mrs. Clinton or her husband, the other organizers of the gala dominated the debate in the courtroom Tuesday -- even though neither they nor the Clintons are expected to testify at the trial, which all sides agree is likely to last about two weeks.

The two men under discussion were Aaron Tonken, who organized the gala, and Peter F. Paul, who according to the government spent more than $1 million underwriting the event. Mr. Rosen reported to the Federal Election Commission that the event cost only about $400,000.

But Mr. Tonken and Mr. Paul have had legal troubles of their own, and Mr. Rosen's lawyers have asked the court to admit into evidence hundreds of pages of documents spelling out their criminal histories. Mr. Tonken is currently serving 63 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud involving fund-raising for charities.

Mr. Paul is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to securities fraud for manipulating the stock of Stan Lee Media, an Internet company that went bankrupt in February 2001. Mr. Paul had already fled to Brazil, where he spent two years in prison before being extradited to the United States in the stock fraud case.

He was also sentenced to three years in prison in 1979 in a scheme to defraud the Cuban government, and was convicted of possessing cocaine with intent to distribute it. In 1985, he was again in trouble with the government, this time for impersonating a dead man when crossing the border from Canada.

In a filing last week, prosecutors objected to introducing ''what amounts to a kitchen's sink worth of bad acts and unsavory conduct,'' contending that the defense is improperly trying to show that Mr. Tonken and Mr. Paul have a propensity to commit criminal acts.

Tuesday morning, the judge, A. Howard Matz, seemed at first to agree with the government's argument, saying that he did not think the defense's material was relevant to the matter at hand. Not that he held any brief for Mr. Tonken and Mr. Paul; both, the judge said, were shown by the evidence to be ''prone to criminality,'' especially Mr. Paul, whom he described as ''a thoroughly discredited, corrupt individual.''

But one of Mr. Rosen's lawyers, Michael R. Doyen, argued that there was a direct relation between the men's other schemes and their motivations to mislead his client. In Mr. Tonken's case, Mr. Doyen said, he was accused of understating the costs of his events not only to donors, but also to organizers, because he wanted to be known for organizing large, successful fund-raisers.

Exactly what Mr. Token pled guilty to is a bit unclear, Mr. Doyen conceded, because many documents in that case have been sealed. Judge Matz urged him to talk to the United States attorney's office about getting them unsealed.

As for Mr. Paul, Mr. Doyen said that he had paid for the gala using the very same accounts, under names like Celebrity Enterprises Inc. and Hollywood Holdings Inc., that he was using for his stock manipulations. So while the government contends that Mr. Paul had every reason to brag to Mr. Rosen about how much he spent on the gala, Mr. Doyen said, ''maybe, on the other hand, he would have reasons for people not to know what he's doing.''